


Made Gentle

by ifwegettherebysunset



Series: Quantum [1]
Category: Yu-Gi-Oh!, Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Alternate Universe - Urban Fantasy, Avatars, Cyberpunk, Established Relationship, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Mages, Magic, Necromancers, Overstimulation
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-17
Updated: 2019-06-17
Packaged: 2020-05-13 09:59:10
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,371
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19248886
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ifwegettherebysunset/pseuds/ifwegettherebysunset
Summary: For a technomage, it's easy to get lost in veins of circuits. Sometimes, Yusei needs a little help untangling himself."[He] made gentle the wild oceans of my soul."(Atticus)





	Made Gentle

**Author's Note:**

> ayyyyy  
> brief break from this ship, but we're back on the bullshit. honestly i'm surprised it took me this long to do some cyberpunk with 5ds but hEy no time like the present amirite
> 
> sorry it's past 1 and i'm tired but wired

As soon as Atem's back in cell service, Crow's in the middle of calling.

Yusei isn't answering his phone.

Atem, who'd been knee-deep in a dig Ishizu invited him to, tries himself. A crackling hum replaces voicemail.

Worry drowns his excitement. It's the last day of his two week assistance, and now his plane can't get here fast enough.

* * *

For a technomage, Neo Domino can be like cocaine. Add Moment's energy, and you've got insomnia rates skyrocketing in their population. And Yusei's a prodigy among his kind. He's singlehandedly lifted Moment and Neo Domino itself to world renown with his inventions and codes. He's non-stop.

Atem moved in with him not just out of love. Yusei needs someone around. He doesn't mean to get lost, but the people around him have to accept that it's inevitable.

Their apartment is part of a two-building complex that's connected by a spiraling ramp for vehicles. They're on the fifth floor, and the elevator's operating at peak capacity. The other residents are probably rejoicing at that, but it only makes Atem's anxiety worse.

The air is practically alive around their door.

"Yusei? Yusei! I'm home!"

Through the door, second door on the left.

Yusei is in the middle of the room. A vulture-sized dragon purrs on his left shoulder, hide alive with electric stars. His bared arms reflect the same currents in his scars. His hands show their embedded enhancements, now updated to sleek, flexible fiber in his knuckles and finger pads, though he'll never be rid of the scars of his first handmade attempt in Satellite. They're in a flurry of motion, gesturing at various holodisplays surrounding him. Atem can't make sense of the jet stream of equations and blueprints.

"Yusei?" Atem calls quietly.

Not even the mage's avatar responds.

Slowly, sticking to the perimeter, Atem makes his way to Yusei's other side. Dread expands when he sees Yusei's eyes. The blue is overtaken by glowing static grey.

Deep absorption. Magic always comes with a price.

From Crow's call, Atem can figure it's been a little less than 48 hours since Yusei started working. His finger conduits are supercharged instead of helping to control the flow of power, and his avatar has been sucked in with him, leaving him without any circuit breakers. One upside is there's nothing plugged into the sockets built into his arms; the last time that happened, he'd had to be taken to the emergency room.

But that won't happen. Atem won't let it.

Atem closes the blinds, blocking the midday shine. Next, he sits next to Yusei, careful to be on the dragon-less side.

The last two weeks have left him a little drained, but he won't let that stop him.

Yusei's discipline thrives in the artificial. Organic currents only interest him so far as checking up on friends. If Aki was here, Atem would call her and her floral magic to counteract this. She is, however, in Germany, and Atem technically deals with organic matter. Or what was once organic.

He hasn't practiced much lately besides helping Ishizu search for spirits in Egypt. He's an oddity among the photophobic necromancers, preferring to walk in the light instead of shadows. He gets shit for not making more use of his natural talent, though he simply doesn't see the need at home.

Unless Yusei is buried in veins of circuits.

Atem counts a couple breaths. The shadows curl voluptuously in the corners of the room. A summoning circle shouldn't be needed here. Atem's power is so opposed to Yusei's billboard lights that it usually only takes some minor demonstration. Shades of shades, afterimages that live mindlessly like bacteria. Easy to call upon, easy to dispel.

The dragon stirs when they near. They've learned to recognize Atem's magic, but they don't like it. They  _really_ don't like it when the shades spread over the screens.

Yusei's fingers waver. His brow twitches. In the well of his mind's eye, he can still see the infinite paths of wires and formulas, but it's odd his physical eyes can't.

Atem presses his forehead to his temple. He squeezes Yusei's shoulder hard enough to hurt.

"Yusei," he murmurs, "Can you hear me?"

The fingers are still wiggling a little, but their pace has noticeably slowed. Organic spirits obstruct more of his view, and his avatar's displeasure is reaching him.

"Yusei. Listen to my voice." Atem traces his chin. "Come back."

There: ever so slightly, a lean into his touch.

"That's it. You're overstimming, Yusei. You have to stop."

The electricity is being choked by that which has none. Yusei's breath is quickening.

Atem grips his face. "Let it go."

Yusei's dragon hisses, but evidently recognizes their mage's human needs. Reluctantly, they climb up Yusei's arm until Yusei's hand drops, plates sparking.

"Thank you, Stardust."

The dragon huffs, reminding Atem strangely of Kaiba's scoff.

Entwining his fingers in shadows, he takes Yusei's other hand. The glow dulls bit by bit.

"There we are," he whispers, "You can do it. Come back."

Yusei's hand starts shaking. He must be starving.

"Come back," Atem repeats.

He catches Yusei before he collapses. The shadows disperse. The screens are gone.

"Hey, hey," Atem says, stroking his cheek, "You're alright. You're at home, in your workshop."

Yusei coughs against his chest and groans pitifully.

"I know. It's been two days this time."

Stardust blinks at them from Yusei's lap. Atem wonders if they knew and did nothing about it, drunk on the power.

"A...Atem?" Yusei rasps.

"Yes. I just came back."

Yusei breathes open-mouthed on his shirt. "Two days."

"Two days. Take it slow."

Yusei grips his arm. His fingers are still sparking a little. Atem doesn't care.

"Stardust?"

Stardust hums.

"Tha...thank you."

Atem kisses his forehead. "Of course. Can you straighten your legs?"

Stardust obligingly hops off to let Yusei try. It's slow-going, with a few grunts and twitches, but eventually Yusei's knees and ankles stretch and crack.

"Good. How do you feel?"

Blue eyes, clear and haggard, look at him. "I don't know."

"We'll start with food, then."

After a few tries, Yusei finds his balance with Atem as a crutch. Stardust trots ahead of them as they trudge to the living room.

Once Yusei's situated at the counter, Atem gives him a water bottle and gets to heating up tomato soup. Stardust leaps up beside Yusei to nudge him into drinking slowly.

"I'm fine," he says after Atem's eighth glance.

"Two days, Yusei."

"I just need a break."

"You need more than that. Hm. Hold on."

Just before the timer goes off, Atem returns from their bedroom wielding noise-canceling headphones. Yusei offers a weak smile in thanks. The second they're on, he slumps in relief.

Atem gives him his soup and a peck on the lips.

* * *

Post-absorption migraine hits hard. Atem swirls a shade through their room, blocking the sunlight reaching the edges of the blinds. Stuffed with painkillers and sheer exhaustion, Yusei passes out quickly. Stardust sinks beneath his skin, becoming a silvery tattoo of wings on his back.

Atem texts their friends. Martha promises to visit tomorrow morning. She and Crow bombard his phone with tips, most he knows, but some he doesn't, like getting Yusei to wear rubber gloves and boots for a few hours. Mostly, though, the responses are relieved and grateful.

Yusei's phone, put on silent with the rest of the apartment's tech, lights up as well. Atem takes it to the living room. Yusei shouldn't hold any electronics for a while.

And he breathes out.

* * *

At around midnight, Yusei peeks into the living room. Atem's on the couch, reading a book.

Atem waves, as Yusei's put his headphones back on.

Yusei smiles. _"Thank you,"_ he signs.

Atem shakes his head fondly.

_"Can I sit?"_

To Atem's pleasant surprise, "sit" involves Yusei lying between his legs, back to his chest. Atem puts his hand into view; Yusei takes it. His fingers reflect the dimmed lights without a trace of magic.

Yusei puts their hands over his heart, zeroing in on thumbing Atem's knuckle. Atem happily resigns to turning the pages one-handed.

Neo Domino's hub of power feels tolerably distant with a necromancer's cool touch. Yusei closes his eyes.

All is quiet.

**Author's Note:**

> i wrote this in like 2 hours on insomnia so, sorry for any typos or tense-mixing lmao


End file.
